Sirach 21:1-16: a reflection

1My son, have you sinned? Do it no more; and ask forgiveness for your past sins. 2Flee from sin as from the face of a snake; for if you go near, it will bite you. Its teeth are like lion’s teeth, slaying people’s souls. 3All iniquity is as a two-edged sword. Its stroke has no healing. 4Terror and violence will waste away riches. So the house of an arrogant man will be laid waste. 5Supplication from a poor man’s mouth reaches to the ears of God, and his judgment comes speedily. 6One who hates reproof is in the path of the sinner. He who fears the Lord will repent in his heart. 7He who is mighty in tongue is known far away; but the man of understanding knows when he slips. 8He who builds his house with other men’s money is like one who gathers stones for his own tomb. 9The congregation of wicked men is as a bundle of tow with a flame of fire at the end of them. 10The way of sinners is paved with stones; and at the end of it is the pit of Hades. 11He who keeps the law becomes master of its intent. The fulfilment of the fear of the Lord is wisdom. 12He who is not clever will not be instructed. There is a cleverness which makes bitterness abound. 13The knowledge of a wise man will be made to abound as a flood, and his counsel as a fountain of life. 14The inward parts of a fool are like a broken vessel. He will hold no knowledge. 15If a man of knowledge hears a wise word, he will commend it and add to it. The wanton man hears it, and it displeases him, so he throws it away behind his back. 16The chatter of a fool is like a burden in the way, but grace will be found on the lips of the wise.

This collection of sayings draws a sharp line between the wise and the fool, and one contrast is especially searching. When a person of understanding hears a wise word, the sage says, he commends it and adds to it; but when the fool hears it, it displeases him, and he throws it behind his back. The difference is not mainly intelligence; it is how each receives a good word.

Notice that the mark of wisdom here is teachability. The wise person welcomes counsel, even correction, takes it in, values it, and builds on it. The fool is offended by it, resents being told anything, and discards the very word that could have helped. Two people can hear the same wise counsel; one grows by it and one tosses it away, and that response reveals which is which.

That is a mirror worth holding up to ourselves, because we all like to think we are wise. But the test is practical: how do you receive a word of counsel or correction? Do you welcome it, weigh it, add it to your understanding, or does it displease you, so that you throw it behind your back and defend yourself? Wisdom is teachable; folly is offended. Cultivate the receptive heart that commends a good word and builds on it. And let your own speech be, as the sage says, grace on the lips of the wise, not the fool's burden of chatter.

Lord, make me teachable, the kind of person who welcomes a good word and even a correction, weighs it, and builds on it, rather than being offended and throwing it aside. Guard me from the pride that resents counsel, and let grace be on my lips, not foolish chatter.